Click here to find out about free doughnuts

You can take that edge off your sweet tooth during National Doughnut Day on Friday, when Krispy Kreme will be giving away a free doughnut. You can also get a free doughnut at Dunkin Donuts if you purchase a beverage.

You can take that edge off your sweet tooth during National Doughnut Day on Friday, when Krispy Kreme will be giving away a free doughnut of any kind with no purchase necessary. You can also get a free doughnut at Dunkin Donuts if you purchase a beverage.

I didn’t know the history of National Doughnut Day until now. The Salvation Army established National Doughnut Day in 1938 to raise money for people in need during the Depression. It happens on the first Friday in June each year. That’s according to a Krispy Kreme press release relying on Wikipedia.

A web search for “National Doughnut Day” found a site called “DonutDayUSA.com” with a slightly different history and spelling for the fried dough. It said, “National Donut Day is on the first Friday of June each year, succeeding the Donut Day event created by the Salvation Army in 1938 to honor the women who served donuts to soldiers during World War I.”

Turns out both sites are right. The Salvation Army’s website says the first National Donut Day was celebrated in Chicago in 1938 “to help raise needed funds during the Great Depression and commemorate the work of the ‘donut lassies’ who helped make the donut what it is today by feeding the tasty confection to American soldiers during World War I. The donuts became synonymous with The Salvation Army, as well as the American soldiers who were returning home with the nickname, ‘doughboys.’”

That’s probably more than you ever wanted to know about that day. And by the way, AP Style – the guide for how journalists should spell and reference things, spells it “doughnut,” not “donut.”

If you want to share your free doughnut delight with the world, there’s a #NationalDoughnutDay2013 hash tag on Twitter to spread the fried dough joy.

Notice anything new in the business landscape lately? Business reporter Amanda Memrick wants to hear from you. Call me at 704-869-1839, send an email to amemrick@gastongazette.comor send a tweet shout out to @AmandaMemrick on Twitter.